July 8 - Ordway to Eads, CO

Michael and Eric

This morning we decided to have breakfast at 6 a.m. at the local restaurant because we knew we wouldn't be able to get any food or drinks before Eads. Breakfast was good and we purchased some extra Gatorades and water to keep hydrated all the way to Eads.  We didn't get on the road until 7 a.m. after breakfast, and applying sunscreen.

The terrain today was pretty flat with very wide plains and very, very gently rolling hills.  The uphills were barely uphill, and the downhills were barely downhill. We could sometimes see hills off in the distance, but we never saw any real mountains.  Those are long gone.  Some of the fields were filled with what we thought were amber waves of grain, which we later learned was wheat, some were filled with hay, and some were clearly planted with corn. Other fields just showed bare dirt that looked like they were being prepared for planting, or had just been planted with nothing coming up yet.

There were not many trees along the way, so few opportunities to stop in the shade.

The deer were a whole lot harder to spot today, although I did see deer at three different times. At one point I saw 4 deer laying down.  When Michael stopped to stare at them, one of the deer stood up and started slowly approaching him.  The deer would take a few steps forward and stop, take a few steps forward and stop, and so on.  But he never got close enough to get a good picture. He seemed as interested in Michael as Michael was in him.  

We did see and hear a lot of small birds, and a few hawk sized birds. We lacked Alicia's bird knowledge to
identify them. We also passed a prairie dog village.

We passed through the town of Arlington which is known for its cemetery.

We arrived in Haswell just before noon to find a mini convenience store that was open. This store sold a few sandwiches that could be heated in the microwave, a few snacks, and cold drinks. Michael found it amusing that they also sold belts for cars and trucks, as in alternator belts, timing belts, and air conditioning belts.  As we were getting ready to leave, the lady locked up the store and left herself. It turns out that the store closed at noon on Saturdays and we were there just in time.

Haswell is famous for having the smallest jail in the United States. It is no longer operating, but a woman walked by who said that her father stayed overnight there in the 1940’s for disorderly conduct.

The park next to the jail in Haswell had a water spigot, which is very helpful for bikers since this is the only source of potable water for 60 miles if the gas station down the road is closed.

For the whole ride today the shoulders were fairly wide and very smooth. Even better there was very little traffic on the road the whole way. We wish everyday would have traffic and roads like today.

Michael started to tire as the afternoon heat wore on, but not Gloria and Eric. We eventually made it to Eads around 2:30. The first thing Michael did was buy a Gatorade and gulp it down. Tonight we will go out to the best restaurant in Eads, which is just short of the only restaurant in Eads. Tomorrow we have another 58 mile ride with no stores, convenience stores, or bathrooms along the way. We will make sure we stock up on snacks and drinks tonight and tomorrow morning.

In Eads we officially reached the halfway point on the TransAm tour and we have now crossed the 2000 mile marker.

Although it was hot, today was another great day. We will go to sleep early tonight in hopes of being on the road by 5 a.m.tomorrow to avoid all the heat. Tomorrow's blogger can tell you how well we did with that 5 a.m. time.  We rarely start at the time we plan to start.